Trafford Centre on verge of sale

Trafford Centre on verge of sale

Manchester's Trafford Centre is on the verge of being sold by property giant Peel Group in a deal worth £750 million.

Peel Group is in 'advanced discussions' with Capital Shopping Centres Group (CSC) over the sale of the shopping centre, which has been valued at £1.6 billion.

CSC already has a portfolio of 13 shopping centres across the UK, including Gateshead's Metrocentre and Manchester Arndale.

The deal would also see 20 per cent of CSC being acquired by Peel Group, with Peel's chairman, John Whittaker, moving in to become CSC's deputy chairman.

Peel Group said, "The talks with CSC reflect Peel Group's long term, ongoing strategy to broaden its investments in many diverse sectors through partnerships and co-investment with complementary businesses.

"As part of this strategy, Peel aims to retain ongoing interests in its major assets, as illustrated by its successful partnerships with RREEF at Peel Ports, Vancouver Airport Services at Peel Airports, Covanta at Ince Park and most recently with SIS Live at Peel's MediaCityUK project."

The group went on to reassure all staff working at The Trafford Centre that 'it's very much business as usual.'